Critic Reviews

Fans of the original Larry games should have no qualms about adding this to your Xbox collection. Larry makes the transition to next-gen console perfectly and creates his own little naughty slice of niche-genre pie. If you love to laugh you’ll love this game.

This is a fun little ride of a game, with some definite adult content, but let’s be honest, there are only about four places where it actually crosses the line into an “R” rating. Otherwise it’s basically a teen-sploitation film, as the saying goes. Relax, pick up that bong, and enjoy the ride.

For me, the new Larry became a guilty pleasure, and I am not very good at mini-games. So if I can bed Morgan, I am pretty sure most of you out there with at least some familiarity with pushing buttons can too. Just don't expect a true adventure game of old. Oh, and the game has a lot of fun with sex and sexy situations. If this type of thing makes you even the least bit uncomfortable – like if watching old Benny Hill reruns sends you to confessional – might I instead suggest to you something with a more Sid Meier flavor.

For me, the new Larry became a guilty pleasure, and I am not very good at mini-games. So if I can bed Morgan, I am pretty sure most of you out there with at least some familiarity with pushing buttons can too. Just don't expect a true adventure game of old. Oh, and the game has a lot of fun with sex and sexy situations. If this type of thing makes you even the least bit uncomfortable – like if watching old Benny Hill reruns sends you to confessional – might I instead suggest to you something with a more Sid Meier flavor.

For me, the new Larry became a guilty pleasure, and I am not very good at mini-games. So if I can bed Morgan, I am pretty sure most of you out there with at least some familiarity with pushing buttons can too. Just don't expect a true adventure game of old. Oh, and the game has a lot of fun with sex and sexy situations. If this type of thing makes you even the least bit uncomfortable – like if watching old Benny Hill reruns sends you to confessional – might I instead suggest to you something with a more Sid Meier flavor.

For people like myself, we grew up on slow PC’s, 8-bit videogame systems, and games that were 2D. Back in the days Sierra was one of those developers who were releasing hits after hits on the PC. Great titles like the great Space Quest series featuring Roger Wilco, to Police Quest series. One series really stood out. And that was the Leisure Suit Larry series. The original Leisure Suit Larry game followed the sexual misadventures of Larry Laffer. Leisure Suit Larry has made a long overdue return to the PC and now videogame consoles thanks to Sierra, Vivendi and High Voltage. Many years have passed and Larry Laffer has now passed on his stunning, sexual charms to his nephew Larry Lovage. I remember Mike Mullis and myself getting pretty excited about the release of this game.

Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude isn't the best role-playing game or the best mini-game compilation, and it doesn't have the greatest visuals or dialogue, but all of its component parts come together to make up one hell of a "guy game." It definitely earns its "M" rating.

To be fair, it's rather questionable whether a real true-to-the-original LSL rendition would have had any real (commercial) success in this day and age, especially on the console. The developers of Magna Cum Laude made a calculated bet in reviving the series, and tried to give a facelift not only to the graphics, but also to the concept - trying, for what it was worth, to port the game to a younger generation of gamers. They ended up with a game that is probably more playable by the masses, but is not quite what fans of the original were waiting for. It's still funny, it's still naughty, and it's still Larry, but ultimately, it's no longer a game for adults - it's for teens.

To be fair, it's rather questionable whether a real true-to-the-original LSL rendition would have had any real (commercial) success in this day and age, especially on the console. The developers of Magna Cum Laude made a calculated bet in reviving the series, and tried to give a facelift not only to the graphics, but also to the concept - trying, for what it was worth, to port the game to a younger generation of gamers. They ended up with a game that is probably more playable by the masses, but is not quite what fans of the original were waiting for. It's still funny, it's still naughty, and it's still Larry, but ultimately, it's no longer a game for adults - it's for teens.

To be fair, it's rather questionable whether a real true-to-the-original LSL rendition would have had any real (commercial) success in this day and age, especially on the console. The developers of Magna Cum Laude made a calculated bet in reviving the series, and tried to give a facelift not only to the graphics, but also to the concept - trying, for what it was worth, to port the game to a younger generation of gamers. They ended up with a game that is probably more playable by the masses, but is not quite what fans of the original were waiting for. It's still funny, it's still naughty, and it's still Larry, but ultimately, it's no longer a game for adults - it's for teens. Then again, if gamer demographic studies can be trusted, Vivendi can probably live with that.

In a simple little story about a college loser who's on the hunt for romance (in any form he can take it), Leisure Suit Larry takes off its clothes and shows us an imaginative world full of sexually starved monkeys that can talk, chicks with dicks, and several other zany enticements that will have you so horny, you'll be licking the dust off your television screen (conditions of individual sets may apply, void where prohibited).

Many men in life are aroused by female breasts (those of us who are heterosexual, anyway). It's just human nature. An animal attraction, if you will. Our eyes calculate their formation, their odd-shaped roundness, and the way they jiggle and wiggle about so gracefully. They're harvested in ripeness for sizing. You can increase the bigness, or lessen it all together. They're filed under several names: hooters, jugs, tits, melons, knockers -- you name it, and you're going to have more than a hundred more to think about. Men are weak against their will. Like dogs, we obey their command.

Video games are for entertainment, first and foremost. They rarely aspire to Shakespearean profundity, so you have to take a game like Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude with a big, scantily dressed, grain of salt. This game will certainly not win any awards for innovation, or advance the cause of console gaming as a positive movement for society, but it never tries to be more than what it is. It’s ribaldry and bathroom humor told with tongue planted firmly in cheek or perhaps hand planted provocatively in pants – take your pick.

As a big fan of the series since its early days, I'm happy about where Larry is heading in this modern world. There is a lot of room for improvement, but the core of what makes these games so memorable is still there in full force - pretty girls, unspeakably embarrassing sexual acts, and an endearing dorkiness that makes the entire experience feel more charming and humorous than exploitative.

As a big fan of the series since its early days, I'm happy about where Larry is heading in this modern world. There is a lot of room for improvement, but the core of what makes these games so memorable is still there in full force - pretty girls, unspeakably embarrassing sexual acts, and an endearing dorkiness that makes the entire experience feel more charming and humorous than exploitative.

It’s difficult to truly classify Magna Cum Laude as an adventure game, because ultimately it is not. While the game does contain some exploration and adventure aspects, the core gameplay boils down to a never-ending series of mini games that become repetitive fairly quickly. Don’t get me wrong, if you don’t get offended easy then LSL is an absolutely hilarious game to play through or even watch someone else play through. Even with all the shocking dialogue and unlockables there really isn’t enough to give LSL legs. The overall length is moderate, but after all the load screens and the repetitive mini-games, a few players might find it difficult to keep going. Overall, an admirable job in reviving and old series, but it certainly won’t be everyone’s cup of tea.

As an adventure or puzzle game, Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude falls short. It merely offers a jumble of the reaction-tests found in games like Space Channel 5, Tapper or Whack-a-Mole. The titillating moments certainly deserve some credit for helping maintain your interest here, but it's the game's humor that's the real star and, ultimately, the only reason to keep playing once the allure of polygonal boobies has worn thin.

Gather around and I’ll tell you the tale of a loveable loser named Larry Laffer. Larry is what you might call an aging hipster, a ladies man that doesn’t quite score with the ladies because--let’s face it--John Travolta he’s not (some guys just know how to wear polyester suits) and those pick-up lines he uses are as cheesy as a jumbo nacho platter. Yet somehow Larry’s exploits have fascinated PC gamers for quite some time mostly because it’s fun to see a likeable loser hilariously crash and burn when it comes to wooing gorgeous ladies. Now Larry has taken a backseat and the spotlight now falls on his nephew, Larry Lovage, in Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude. Does this game bring the same semi-raunchy fun of the PC games of old? Like young Larry, let’s give it the old college try.

Among those of us old enough to have played it, the Leisure Suit Larry series has been a real cherished memory. The well-loved adventure series stood out thanks to fantastic humor and "adult situations." Now, to the delight of kids over 17 everywhere (especially those whose parents don't have Cinemax), Vivendi and High Voltage have brought the series back in Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude.

Among those of us old enough to have played it, the Leisure Suit Larry series has been a real cherished memory. The well-loved adventure series stood out thanks to fantastic humor and "adult situations." Now, to the delight of kids over 17 everywhere (especially those whose parents don't have Cinemax), Vivendi and High Voltage have brought the series back in Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude.

If you can forgive its brain-dead gameplay and occasionally frustrating design, Magna Cum Laude is a hysterically entertaining romp through a world of wacky sexual hijinks. Times sure have changed since the last time a Leisure Suit Larry game hit store shelves. Once the name in sexually charged adventure gaming, the Leisure Suit Larry series has been altogether dormant since the '90s. This could at least be partially attributed to the fact that the sort of humor the series brought to the table was frequently being upstaged by increasingly foul and bawdy humor in all other facets of the media. Now, more than half a decade after the last Leisure Suit Larry, VU Games and developer High Voltage have brought out Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude, a total reenvisioning of the franchise both from a gameplay and content perspective.

While we continue to lament LucasArts' cruel and nonsensical cancellation of Sam & Max: Freelance Police while busy commissioning 49 Episode 3 titles (hey, make one of them an adventure you buffoons!), at least one old adventure game favourite has been resurrected with some success with Sierra's rebirth of Leisure Suit Larry. Except, hang on, didn't most vaguely non-retarded gamers find the whole Leisure Suit Larry series sad beyond belief? Full of juvenile humor (without the 'u') and ham fisted attempts to woo the ladies? We certainly recall the regular ferocious critical berating from the early days of PC Gamer and did the decent thing and stuck to playing LucasArts, Revolution and anyone else capable of spinning a decent puzzle-based, narrative-rich adventure. Honestly, if you had the Lucas games and a few others, why bother with the others?

Back in the day when text adventures were quite the popular genre on the PC, Sierra ruled supreme with incredible titles such as the King’s Quest series and Space Quest. Before the ESRB rating there were even mature-minded titles such as the violent Police Quest games and, of course, the naughty Leisure Suit Larry series. The Leisure Suit Larry series claim to fame was its risqué humor and adult situations that often resulted in some pretty hysterical outcomes of the American Pie variety. So it came as a surprise that Sierra not only released Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude on the PC but also on the PS2. Is this Larry still able to produce some decent laughs to make this the funniest game you’ll enjoy slipping into our favorite console?

When all is said and done, Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude isn’t that good of a game, that’s saved from being completely abysmal by a rather good, if not lowbrow sense of humor. In all honesty, people will still want to play it for one reason or another. Well, the two reasons are either nostalgia or the promise of seeing pixilated nudity, or both. Good for a few laughs, but not really worth the cost of admission.

What gamer in his twenties or thirties doesn’t have fond memories of Al Lowe’s Leisure Suit Larry series? Perverted and harmless, Larry was rejected by woman after woman as he sleazed his way into any number of insane or awkward locations in search of a woman desperate enough to give in to his ridiculous advances. This was the charm of the series when it was under the control of Al Lowe. Magna Cum Laude, however, is neither under the control of Al Lowe nor really all that charming.

After six years of inactivity, Leisure Suit Larry has returned, prepared to leave a bittersweet taste in our mouths, like the early morning reincarnation of last night's pizza. Back when I was just a fledgling video game addicted teenager, I spent many a day and night stumbling through the Leisure Suit Larry games. I could probably blame my previous dysfunctional relationships and my haphazard interactions with people on this series. In the past, the Larry games had been among the top of the adventure genre, a genre that seems to be long dead and gone. I was personally hoping to see Magna Cum Laude revive the genre and bring it back to its previous glory, but it seems my hopes were in vain.

All in all, Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude is a game that I enjoyed playing immensely, but do I think it was a great game? No, average at best. Worth a try? Maybe. Worth a rent? Definitely, but only if you’re above 18. This game is definitely not for kids.

Once there was a man named Al Lowe, a former high-school music teacher who got his start in the game industry making educational software starring Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. This business wasn't enough to satisfy his creative urges, however, for he was secretly a dirty old man, the sort of person you wouldn't want your children be anywhere near during their formative years.

Iconclude by stating that this game will be able to motivate the hormone-heavy gamers amongst us for a couple of hours. The reasons for this will at the beginning be the (often not fullfilled) promises to female nudity, but after a while only the mostly funny and burnt stories combined with the will to finish the game remain as sole drives. Only the real die-hard tittylovers will really enjoy this game, the rest can let this game perish in the store shelves. One final tip: nude breasts can be found all over the internet and you don't even have to play one mini-game to get it: Google is more than enough! I myself am patiently waiting for an old-school Larry adventure and in the meantime I'll practise my charmes on living test subjects.

All that being said, this question remains: Is this a game that is worth your hard earned thirty dollars? I can't honestly say that it is. The reason is that LSL:MCL, while a very hilarious game, is not much of a successor to the LSL crown. The original LSL games were true, unabashed adventure games that required intelligence, wit and time to work through. The fact the game also featured a boatload of comedy about getting laid was just a bonus - the LSL games were fun to PLAY. LSL:MCL is nothing of the sort. This game is little more than a treasure hunt, with more than a few repetitive mini-games you have to play to move on to the next phase. The game offers next to no challenge, and requires nothing more than quick fingers to work your way into the shorts of the throngs of campus girls everywhere.

To make use of the smoking hot computer that I had acquired in the early '90s (complete with "Turbo" button), I ventured into gaming, playing titles such as Police Quest and King's Quest. It was also at this tender age that I was introduced to the hot pixelated babes of Leisure Suit Larry. As an indicator of the hardware improvements over the years, games have evolved from pixelated 2D titles to amazingly detailed 3D environments and character models. Vivendi's latest offering, Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude, capitalizes on these hardware and graphical advances, but how does this installment compare to the previous titles in the series?

It’s still too early to tell if LCL:MCL is a success, though it was at the top of the rental charts for a few weeks, but I still have high hopes that if Larry spawns a new franchise, that Vivendi would then resurrect other classics such as Gabriel Knight or King’s Quest or….

Still though, kudos to Vivendi for at least attempting to resurrect Larry for a new generation of gamers and double kudos for having the courage to stray from Larry’s adventure roots. In the final analysis, Magna Cum Laude is not a bad game simply because it features no adventure elements, it’s just seems to be a misguided attempt, punctuated by moments of hilarity. Cut the arcade games in half, add a few more musical numbers and a few real puzzles and LCL:MCL would shine.

Because of the shallow gameplay, I can't imagine anyone playing through this game once, much less multiple times. It's a simplistic romp into gaming nostalgia that won't appeal to anyone but the most retro of the retro-gamers out there. The fun is minimal, so save your money for something better. And if you really need to see digital flesh, you might consider an anime DVD over this.

To be fair, Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude isn't all bad. There are a few good jokes here and there, the ability to skip mini-games eases the tedium a bit, and the girls -- CGI as they might be -- are easy on the eyes. Still, we can't help but think how much more enjoyable this game could have been with some better jokes, a few more interesting mini-games, and the ability to explore without loading screens every 15 seconds. Buy it if you must, but if you're really looking for sex, laughs and videogames, you'll probably be better served taking your $30 and spending it on Simpsons: Hit & Run and a side order of Hustler.

It's a shame that the new generation of gamers had to get their first taste of this raunchy franchise in this bastardized form. While it has the series' trademark snappy dialogue, sultry vixens, and more double entendres than a classic Rodney Dangerfield routine, it's missing one thing: the fun. The mini-games dragged after only a few hours, and getting through the game felt like a chore. Still, there's a good chance that the game will sell well, so hopefully the developers will be able to fix their mistakes, challenge our brains as much as our thumbs, and give us the game we deserve. Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude might be for grown-ups, but it needs to go back to school.

It's a shame that the new generation of gamers had to get their first taste of this raunchy franchise in this bastardized form. While it has the series' trademark snappy dialogue, sultry vixens, and more double entendres than a classic Rodney Dangerfield routine, it's missing one thing: the fun. The mini-games dragged after only a few hours, and getting through the game felt like a chore. Still, there's a good chance that the game will sell well, so hopefully the developers will be able to fix their mistakes, challenge our brains as much as our thumbs, and give us the game we deserve. Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude might be for grown-ups, but it needs to go back to school.

The linchpin of the original LSL games’ humor was that, try as he might, Larry Laffer couldn’t get laid. Of course he couldn’t—he was a buffoon, But he was a loveable buffoon, and you kept playing because, well, you kinda wanted to help him out. When Larry Lovage gets laid, it’s almost infuriating that such a gross nimrod is actually making headway. Gabe Kaplan notwithstanding. LSL just isn’t that funny or that fun—and no amount of boobs can make up for that.

My boyfriend isn't really into videogames. He is, however, really into boobs, so I figured Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude would be the right gaming gateway drug for him. Boobs will make a man do almost anything, right? Wrong. Boobs will not make a man play repetitive minigames. Boobs will not make a man sit patiently through innumerable loading screens. And boobs will not stop a man from recoiling in horror at a cut-scene in which a girl appears to have sex with a bundle of flaming twigs that is actually a short guy dressed in a mascot suit. In short, boobs will not make a man endure a bad videogame.

Overall, Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude had a lot of potential. To begin with, MCL was a very fun game for the first twenty minutes or so. But as soon as the player begins to realize that the set-up is going to be the same for every single girl, the game really loses its appeal. The game bases itself on immense amounts of repetition, which is an absolute dealbreaker. There is absolutely no reason to even rent this game; it’s just not worth it.

The reason for the grade not being all bad is the fact that Magna Cum Laude has its moments – and also we miss some innocent entertainment from the pelvic area. I am forced to admit that I have reinstalled some of my old games from the Ultimate Pleasure Pack which contain all the old Larry games, and it is still royally entertaining, even if I have completed them a few times each.

Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude is the equivalent to spending 8 hours in a highway rest area bathroom stall. For the moments that are good and for the first few stages when the mini games aren't so bad, and for the overall feel, it gets some credit, but not nearly enough to recommend a purchase - unless rectangular boobs and bukkake references do something for you.

Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude is one of the worst games we've ever seen. As much as we'd like to see more sexual content in games, we're afraid Magna Cum Laude will do for Mature games what Showgirls did for NC-17 rated movies. The only reason it's not getting an 'F' is because it does have quite a few boobs, and we like those a lot. Conversely, we do not like this game at all. Although it's hard to ignore the siren call of digital boobery, please, cover your ears and swear an oath of gaming celibacy. You'll thank us in the morning.

Don’t be fooled by all the wars, politics, and equal rights rhetoric - teen sexuality is a serious issue in America today. Many noble organizations try to thwart teen sex, but they’re getting beaten like gimps at an S&M show by all the lewdness on TV, and more than ever, video games.

Don’t be fooled by all the wars, politics, and equal rights rhetoric - teen sexuality is a serious issue in America today. Many noble organizations try to thwart teen sex, but they’re getting beaten like gimps at an S&M show by all the lewdness on TV, and more than ever, video games.

At one stage the original Larry sitting in a bar laments "whatever happened to point and click". He should have pined more generally for the Larry franchise. The opening 5 minutes of Love For Sail has more humour and merit than I found in the hours I wasted on this. There is more I could tell you but I won't. Leisure Suit Larry: Magna Cum Laude is not sexy or clever, entertaining or witty. Call me a fuddy duddy if you will, but my recommendation is to go play something - almost anything - else.